TFP moving to Wordpress

In order to take advantage of the options available on my new iPhone (i.e., blog posting and managing), I've moved my blog to WordPress. You can read it here.

Disney's Painted Basses

I've painted, metal flaked, and otherwise damaged more than a few basses in my life as a musician. Now, Disney has produced a series of painted basses to benefit the Grammy's education programs.

String basses with a New Orleans theme, an Enchanted Princess, Dumbo's Pink Elephants, a Cheshire Cat grin, and a Genie were introduced at the Grammy Museum on Thursday. The next time the instruments stand side-by-side will be in the summer when they are auctioned at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas to benefit the Grammy In The Schools music education programs of the Grammy Foundation.

Artists from the Walt Disney Animation Studio were invited to present ideas. Once concepts were selected, they donated their time in creating the final works.

"I want one," said Stanley Clarke, Grammy winning jazz bassist and composer, on hand to speak to how education is enhanced by learning how to play an instrument.

One bass will be on display at the Grammy Museum while the others will be dispatch to different venues for a tour. Stops will include Planet Hollywood locations in Las Vegas and New York and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

Animator Brian Kesinger recalled how he was mulling over the final design and was toying with an idea of adding a layer of clear coat. When his car broke down in front of an auto body and paint store, he took it as a sign and told the owner about his project. "His eyes lit up," said Kesinger. The store owner also donated his time to add a final sheen to his Genie string bass.

The upright bass that will be on display at the Grammy Museum has not been selected, but keep in mind that "Aladdin" won two 1993 Grammys and was nominated for a third (Friend Like Me). The Genie may be a downtown resident until summer.

Picture This Film Festival

The Picture This Film Festival is taking place in Calgary February 8-10.

Picture this…film festival is an international disability film festival. It is a non-profit annual event initiated by the Community Development department of Calgary Scope Society, a registered non-profit society.

The Calgary Scope Society provides services to adults with disabilities and is one of the charities recently in the news regarding the budget cuts to service providers for people with disabilities.

Crisis Camp Haiti

Here's an upcoming event for those tech savvy individuals interested in helping aid agencies working in Haiti.

Crisis Camp Haiti:
On Saturday February 6th, 2010, we will be hosting CrisisCamp Haiti Calgary to bring together volunteers to collaborate on technology projects which aim to assist in Haiti's relief efforts by providing data, information, maps and technical assistance to NGOs, relief agencies and the public.

Copyright law and the most famous 6 seconds of contemporary music

I'm working on some research regarding copyright laws in the music industry, with a focus on genres when they are emerging (i.e., considered underground). Copyright laws are all about providing incentives for creative development and productive research. One of the big questions about copyright laws, particularly in the arts, is whether they have any retroactive power regarding things created (and not copyrighted) in the past that are being currently adopted and used (often without remuneration).

One of the people I'm working with on this sent me the video below regarding what is likely the most famous 6 second drum break in contemporary music. Its originally by a band called the Winstons and was written in 1969. This 6 seconds made its way through rap and hip-hop, helped found drum & bass and jungle music, and has made its way into advertising.

January 13, 2010: a rough day for music

Yesterday, three prominent musicians died: Teddy Pendergrass (soul, R&B), Ed Thigpen (jazz) and Jay Reatard (punk, garage). Rough day across all genres of American music.

Where Not To Go for Musical Instrument Repairs

As important as positive recommendations are, its also important doubt places you shouldn't go. In the past, I've written positively about Ross Hill (luthier), P.J. Tan's Violin Shop, and the String Emporium(e.g., here and here). Given the recent grief me and friends of mine have run into lately, here's a couple of warnings.

1. Guitar Connection: This used to be the place for amplifier repairs. Boy, how things have changed. A friend recently brought in a Fender Reverb for repair. Whenever the amp was turned on, all that came out was very loud white-ish noise. He was told a week for the repair. After a week, still not ready. Second week, still not done. Finally, after three weeks he decides he's just going to go pick it up and take it elsewhere. After calling the store, he's told it will be ready that day. Goes in that day and is told by the owner how great it sounds, how he had been playing it for a couple of hours to check it out. As compensation for having taken so long, the owner tells him the repair is free. My friend gets to rehearsal, turns it on, and once again white noise.
   Exasperated, my friend takes it to Long and McQuade and gets it repaired in an hour. Turns out the guys at Guitar Connection (if they did anything) used the wrong types of wires and failed to replace a bad power tube.

   
   Lesson: Avoid the Guitar Connection for amplifier repairs.
   

   
   

2. V.A. Hill Strings: The stories from this place about. Basically the stories revolve around the staff at Hill Strings not really knowing much about instruments. My favorite (recounted to me by a luthier in Edmonton) is someone who bought a cello for $800 in Edmonton and was told by V.A. Hill Strings that the cello was worth $3,000. She then sold the cello to V.A. Hill for $2,000 and went back to Edmonton to buy another cello for $800.

   
   My experience with Hill Strings is equally odd. I brought in a 1920's King double bass to get some cracks repaired and the fingerboard planed. I was going to sell the bass in order to get the funds to upgrade to a carved bass. After a couple of days, I got a call from the owner telling me that they didn't think the bass was worth fixing and that the cost of the repair ($650) was more than the instrument was worth. I told them to to ahead and repair the bass. When I picked up the bass, they had put a new bridge on the bass without having fit it appropriately. The fingerboard and cracks were repaired adequately and I paid for the repair. After cutting the bridge myself, I sold the bass the following week for $2,500.

   
   Lesson: Be wary of the repairs and prices at V.A. Hill Strings.

Itay Talgam on Leading (like a conductor)

TED has a relatively new video of Itay Talgam discussing conducting and leadership. Its a great talk that highlights the differences in conducting style, what they are communicating, and how they are assuming a role of leadership. I particularly like his discussion of Carlos Kleiber. I have a new understaing of what he is communicating, something I didn't have when I saw the video on this post.

Review: Tuff-Lite Bass Case from the String Emporium

Over the last 2 years, I've had to ship a bass three times. Most recently to go to Stanford and New York. In the past I had used David Gage bass trunks, older model borrowed from friends. However, last year, with two trips planned and another three slowly materializing, I opted to purchase a trunk of my own.

I did some research comparing prices and features (the primary being weight) and opted for the Tuff-Lite trunk from the String Emporium. I opted for the standard model, thinking that the hard part was getting it on the plane, not the actual weight of the thing. It cost $1,50, weighs just over 60 lbs.

As a quick aside, my experience has been that there is a flat fee (about $175) for traveling with something of this size. I've never had anybody weigh the case. My tips for traveling with a bass are here.

Relative to the gage trunk, I chose the Tuff-Lite for a couple of reasons. First was the price. I don't travel so much that I can rationalize paying almost an additional $1,000. (This is also in part why I opted for the standard Tuff-Lite.) Secondly, I was never a fan of the clasps system on the Gage trunk. In every situation where I've traveled with my bass, I've had to open up the trunk. The Tuff-Lite closes with a series of bungee cables which makes opening and closing the case relatively easy. Moreover, since it can't be locked anyway due to airline security regulations, its easy for others to open it if need be. The video below shows the String Emporium's own Steve Koscica demonstrating the case.




I like this case and it's been great on the road. Some specifics:

1. Inside the case, there are several straps which can be used to secure the bass in place. Also included are a couple of foam pads that you can place in order to protect the instrument. The straps are well-placed and I feel provide better support for the instrument than the airbags I have seen in other cases.
2. The case has several handles on the exterior, each of which is pretty thoughtfully placed. I had a relatively easy time maneuvering the case through the airport and found myself using the various handles to make various turns and tips down corridors and into elevators.
3. The casters (as with the handles) are mounted on the case exterior. I hadn't seen this in other cases and it makes replacing or altering the case easy. The last Gage case I used was an older model with a broken caster. Since the caster was molded into the trunk it coulomb be replaced. Here, if I breaks a wheel, I can easily unscrew the caster and replace it.

Overall, this is a great case, well worth the price. There is one thing I didn't like about the case: there are metal strips on the front and back of the case that, presumably, make it easier to slide for baggage handling. On my case at least, they are sharp at the ends and a jaggedly cut. I tore a shirt and cut a finger on one of these strips. To remedy the problem, I covered the ends of the strips with a couple pieces of duct tape to keep the ends covered.

2010, back at it.

My apologies for having being so derelict in keeping this blog up to date. New reviews of gear and gig stories on the way. Mea culpa.

Canada's Music Industry

According to a recent report by the Martin Prosperity Institute:

On a per capita basis, Canada’s music industry dramatically outperforms the US when it comes to the presence of music business establishments (this category includes record labels, distributors, recording studios, and music publishers). Canada has 5.9 recording industry establishments per 100,000 residents, about five times the US figure of 1.2.

However, this appears to really be only on a per capita basis:

Recording industry establishments in the US are slightly larger – they have an average of 5.9 employees each, compared to only 5.7 in Canada. But the difference is dramatically more pronounced when it comes to revenue. US establishments earn average receipts of $4.1 million per establishment, compared to only US$540,000 in Canada.

So Canada has considerably greater per capita musical activity than the United States in terms of record labels, recording studios, and licensing houses. But the data tell us that the United States has much higher-earning businesses that are more heavily clustered in fewer places – especially Nashville, Los Angeles, and to a lesser extent, New York.

While this research is preliminary, we can speculate about what drives these differences. Economic geographers, from Jane Jacobs to Allen Scott to the Martin Prosperity Institute’s own recent analysis, have long noted that growth in creative industries like music tends to be driven by clustering and economies of scope and scale. The concentration of the American music business in a few key cities likely encourages these forces. In Canada, the fact that the music business is more evenly distributed is certainly a positive thing for musicians looking for opportunities in smaller cities. But failure to cluster in a few key centres may be discouraging the Canadian music industry from growing larger and more internationally competitive.

Now that's a trick!

A lot of rockabilly players stand on their basses, or put their basses over them, or play with their feet. The list of tricks goes on and on. But this is a real stunt!

The Talking Piano

In this truly amazing video, we see how a frequency analysis of an individual's voice can be turned into "music". The result: A Talking Piano.

National Ramones Day

So today (October 8th) is the birthday of both Johnny and C-Jay Ramone. If there was ever an occasion of a holiday in the name of the Ramones, this might be it.

Matt Heller on CBC

Matt Heller (double bassist for the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra) was on Contrabass Conversations recently discussing the ISB convention.

John Philip Sousa on the recording industry

I'm currently reading Elijah Wald's book How the Beatles Destroyed Rock and Roll. In it he discusses the views of John Philip Sousa towards recording and the dissemination of "machine-made music." The quote below is from Sousa's essay "The Menace of Mechanical Music" [published in 1906]. The essay made me think of Jason Heath's recent blog post on why teenagers don't listen to classical music.

Right here is the menace in machine-made music! The first rift in the lute has appeared. The cheaper of these instruments of the home are no longer being purchased as formerly, and all because the automatic music devices are usurping their places.

And what is the result? The child becomes indifferent to practice, for when music can be heard in the homes without the labor of study and close application, and without the slow process of acquiring a technic, it will be simply a question of time when the amateur disappears entirely, and with him a host of vocal and instrumental teachers, who will be without field or calling.

Great Britain is experiencing this decline in domestic music and the English press is discussing it seriously in its editorials. A recent writer in the London Spectator dwells at considerable length upon the prevailing condition, and points to the novel as a sign of the times. The present-day fashionable writer of society fiction, he declares, does not find it necessary to reënforce his heroine with vocal accomplishment, "as in the good old days." He ascribes the passing of home performance, both vocal and instrumental, to the newborn love of athletics among the maids of Albion, together with the introduction of the phonograph as a mechanical substitute for amateur performances....

Under such conditions the tide of amateurism cannot but recede, until there will be left only the mechanical device and the professional executant. Singing will no longer be a fine accomplishment; vocal exercises, so important a factor in the curriculum of physical culture, will be out of vogue!

Then what of the national throat? Will it not weaken? What of the national chest? Will it not shrink? When a mother can turn on the phonograph with the same ease that she applies to the electric light, will she croon her baby to slumber with sweet lullabys, or will the infant be put to sleep by machinery?

Children are naturally imitative, and if, in their infancy, they hear only phonographs, will they not sing, if they sing at all, in imitation and finally become simply human phonographs -- without soul or expression? Congregational singing will suffer also, which, though crude at times, at least improves the respiration of many a weary sinner and softens the voices of those who live amid tumult and noise.

Just so far as a spirit of emulation once inspired proud parent or aspiring daughter to send for the music teacher when the neighbor child across the way began to take lessons, the emulation is turning to the purchase of a rival piano player in each house, and the hope of developing the local musical personality is eliminated.

The country dance orchestra of violin, guitar and melodeon had to rest at times, and the resultant interruption afforded the opportunity for general sociability and rest among the entire company. Now a tireless mechanism can keep everlastingly at it, and much of what made the dance a wholesome recreation is eliminated.

The country band with its energetic renditions, its loyal support by local merchants, its benefit concerts, band wagon, gay uniforms, state tournaments, and the attendant pride and gayety, is apparently doomed to vanish in the general assault on personality in music.

Remember, his was written in 1906. I, like Sousa and Heath, think that the changes in music listening habits has a large part to do with the way teenagers (and the rest of us) listen to music today. With the easy availability of MP3 players and the internet providing quick access to literally hundreds of thousands of listening options, classical music is just not properly "placed" to be consumed like other genres: the pieces are significantly longer; the pieces vary in tempi, dynamics and other ways that don't catch people's attention in a world where individuals can listen to their iPod for 3 minutes at a time between classes, meetings, and other friendly interruptions.

The way we consume music has also affected jazz. The fact that individual's purchase their music online now (more than ever) suggests that the art of writing liner notes is being lost. For jazz fans and musicians, the liner notes of an album provide important information on, among other things, the side-men on a given recording date. This has changed (I believe) how people listen to a jazz recording: if the side-men are not mentioned, what are the chances that the average listener will be noticing their contribution to the recording. Now it is harder to follow the contributions of side-men like Larry Grenadier, Eric Alexander, or Terrel Stafford in their contributions to the recordings of others. As a result, I think the way we are currently listening to music also has something to do with the perception (real or not) that jazz is in need of saving.

Airline Travel with Your Bass

I recently made an airline trip with my bass in my new Tuff-Lite bass trunk. Overall, the trip was pretty easy (surprisingly). Everyone was nice and my bass was well-cared for by the baggage and airline folks. I've included a few tips from my experiences. Hopefully this blog post will help future travelers with similar endeavors.

Just to give some details, I went from YYC to SFO via SLC and back. I flew Delta. As far as i can tell, the only airlines that are reasonable as far as traveling with a bass are Delta and Northwest. They are in the process of a merger, which I'm not sure is good or bad. We'll see.

I packed my bass in my Tuff-Lite case from the String Emporium. As I expected, I got a lot of odd looks at the airport, particularly from the Delta staff who at first seemed a little unsure as to what to do with the trunk.

TIP #1: DO YOUR HOMEWORK:
Prior to making the trip, I got confirmation from Delta that the bass in its case would make the trip. To do this, I spent roughly 45 minutes on the phone making my reservation and getting all the details ironed out. They asked for the measurements of my case and its weight (84" x 34" x 22" and about 100lbs fully loaded). Although this is in excess of Delta's rules (120 linear inches and 100 lb max), the reservation clerk found out the size of the cargo door on the plane (43" X 22") and told me that "if it fits, we'll take it." The person I dealt with on the phone documented our conversation, including all the measurements, and our conversation was able to be reviewed at the various airports by the Delta staff.

TIP #2: GET THERE EARLY:
Even with this assurance, I was pretty paranoid. At the airport, the Delta staff avoided me, looking past me and asking people after me in line to come up. Finally I asserted myself and asked to be served. They finally checked the bag although they were baffled by how the case would be handled once I cleared customs. The extra time it took to get the trunk cleared and in the hands of the baggage folks was about 40 minutes. Add this as additional time you'll need at the airport.

TIP #3: GET A GREEN CARD FOR YOUR INSTRUMENT:
The folks at US customs (which I cleared in Calgary) asked about the value of my instrument. Once I told them, they asked for a "green card" for the instrument. Apparently, when you're traveling with an expensive instrument, you can obtain a green card for that instrument from your home airport's custom authority. This card indicates that the instrument originated in Canada. In this way, when you return there are no questions regarding where the instrument came from. The Canadian customs people (and those in the US too) are apparently on the lookout for purchases made in the US on which duties and taxes may be owed. The green card avoids these hassles upon return. (Given that I don't have a green card for my bass, I'll deal with this potentiality in a week's time.)

TIP #4: BE NICE TO EVERYONE:
Naturally, when traveling with a bass trunk there is a lot of curiosity on the part of fellow travelers and airport staff. Be nice to all of them. Realize that you're in some sense at their mercy. Given that the bass trunk is over-sized, they can always decide not to take it. Its worth the extra time to talk with them, entertain their inquiries, and open the case again and again (for customs and security checks) with a smile on your face.

Ray Drummond's Core 50

I just came back from the Stanford Jazz Workshop. At the sessions, bassist Ray Drummond gave out a list of the core 50 songs every bassist (and other instrumentalists) should know. Here it is for those interested.

1. I can’t get started
2. Body and soul
3. Take the A train
4. Sophisticated lady
5. Chelsea bridge
6. Prelude to a kiss
7. I got rhythm
8. Cherokee
9. Cheryl
10. Now is the time
11. Giant steps
12. Invitation
13. Blue monk
14. Well you needn’t
15. Willow weep for me
16. How high the moon
17. Whispering
18. All the things you are
19. What is this thing called love
20. I’ll remember April
21. In a mellow tone
22. It don’t mean a thing
23. All God’s children got rhythm
24. Scrapple from the Apple
25. Round midnight
26. Sweet Georgia Brown
27. There will never be another you
28. Afternoon in Paris
29. Have you met Miss Jones
30. Caravan
31. Was for not
32. I remember Clifford
33. Gone with the wind
34. Like someone in love
35. Con Alma
36. A night in Tunisia
37. Bebop
38. Yesterdays
39. Polka dots and moonbeams
40. Stella by starlight
41. Love for sale
42. Mr. PC
43. There is no greater love
44. Softly as a morning sunrise
45. Summertime
46. Dolphin dance
47. Lose in the closet
48. Lover Man
49. But not for me
50. Lover come back to me

I think there are a lot of interesting inclusions and omissions from this list. Part of Ray's point here (I believe) is to establish a list of songs which have important forms and changes.

Ross Hill - Calgary luthier

I recently took in my 1951 Nicola Alagia bass for some work on the fingerboard. I bought this bass from PJ Tan in Edmonton, someone who I've written about before.

I took the bass to Aeolian Strings as I heard that Ross Hill was working there. Ross is a Calgary luthier who I had heard great things about from both jazz players and members of the CPO.

I have been looking for a luthier in Calgary for some time. There are very few places that will take a double bass. There's the principal of the CPO, Charles Garret, who does great work but only relatively minor repairs (e.g., bridges, seams). Then there's VA Hill Strings which was once the namesake of Ross Hill. (Due to a divorce, he's no longer involved with VA Hill Strings. 'Nuff said.) I took in an older bass once and a visiting luthier did a great job done. A second time (with my 1920's King laminate bass), I received a phone call to tell me that the bass wasn't worth the cost of repairs ($600). I had them do the work, the regular luthier did a lousy job, Vicky Hill and the luthier treated me like a chump (rolling their eyes at me as I spoke), and I sold the bass for $2,400. In short, I don't recommend VA Hill Strings for anything. I've had other experiences there while looking at bows and have heard stories that just made me laugh. My general impression is that they are not as informed/experienced as they present or believe themselves to be.

Moving on, I was excited about taking my bass to Ross Hill. From my perspective he's been a bit of a spectre: someone you hear about but never see.

After he looked at my bass, he recommended a new fingerboard. I admit, the fingerboard was getting thin, I just didn't think it needed the whole thing replaced. I opted to have the work done, plus fixing a seam, adjusting and installing some adjusters in the bridge. We talked over the phone about what I wanted, but never got together to talk about different possible shapes for the fingerboard.


I've had the bass back now for a couple of weeks. Simply but: the work is excellent! The bass is a joy to play; its fast; it feels so natural. I'm amazed at how great the bass plays. Its like a new instrument. He even managed to do some work to the soundpost and bridge to even out the tone across the strings. Its deep "Italian oily sound" is better than ever. Incredible!

My strongest recommendation of Ross Hill. He can be reached through Aeolian Strings (403.244.5593).

Jazz 50 Years Ago

Here's the article. 'Nuff said. Will we ever have such a landmark year for music in any genre?